We all knew before it even started that the Most Valuable Player of the big game (am I allowed to call it the Super Bowl without paying the NFL?) would be the one who made a big play worthy of celebrating. Quarterbacks have won more than half of them, that number increasing with Eli’s naming last night, with running backs and wide receivers taking most of the rest.

But could the MVP have won the game without the 53rd man on the roster? There are a lot of players on a championship team that seem far from the spotlight. We know the Bradys and the Mannings that do amazing the things with the ball, but what about the right guard that protects their blindside when they drop back to pass? Without that guy doing his job, they wouldn’t have time or space to do the things they do.

In your role as an associate, at times you might feel like you are working in anonymity while someone else raises the MVP award – getting all of the glory and the big salary bump. If you are blessed you will serve on a staff with a leader who goes out of his or her way to recognize your contribution to the ministry’s success. If you are not part of a team like that, cultivate that environment. Compliment others on staff when they do things well, thank your supervisor for his/her support, let volunteers know how much you appreciate the time and gifts they bring to the ministry. That kind of positivity is contagious.

Remember, we are all members of one body, dependent upon each other to function most fully. I love that image that Paul uses:

“The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect” (1 Corinthians 12:21-23 NRSV).

The Most Valuable Pastor is the one who knows his/her role within the body.